Monday, May 4, 2009

A great end to a great year.

I'm in denial as I'm typing this, but today is Sindhu and I's last day as diversity fellows.

The year has absolutely flown by and I've enjoyed this fellowship more than words could even begin to explain. I have had the opportunity to not only expand on my own diversity interests but also be exposed to other perspectives that have changed the way I saw things.

I have had the opportunity to grow as a person and get an inside look at the ridiculously large amount of resources University Library truly has for students who want to step outside of the box and obtain something greater than just your basic "four year education."

I highly encourage others to apply for this fellowship if they are an undergraduate and passionate about diversity. It has been an experience I will never forget.

Thank you for everything,
Alise Cool

Friday, March 13, 2009

Reflections


Two months have flown by since my last post and yet it feels like days.

"Beyond Stereotypes" has come and gone, and I couldn't have asked for a better turnout. I can proudly say we had a total of 66 participants and conversations were strong. Four professors have expressed interest in incorporating the sessions into their curricula in future semesters. Out of all the evaluation forms we received back, only one was negative. I feel proud that I helped create something that looks to become a regular feature of University Library in years to come.

Yesterday I represented University Library at the Ishmael Beah festivities on campus. For those of you who don't know, Ishmael Beah is the author of "A Long Way Gone," which was the campus reader project this year. He is a native of Sierra Leone, who at the age of 12 tragically lost his entire family at the hands of a brutal civil war. He was enlisted as a child soldier and was forced to not only witness but commit horrific crimes, at the risk of losing his own life. The book tells the true account of his childhood, what he went through and the miraculous recovery that followed. He now travels across the globe sharing his message of peace and hope for victimized children.

Considering the lecture was held the day before Spring Break commenced, I wasn't sure what to expect in terms of the turnout. However, walking in you could immediately tell how many people's lives this man's novel has touched by the fact that the room set up to seat 500 was packed. I was lucky enough to get a seat right behind the man himself, and I could tell just by looking at him that he has been through a lot in his short life. Before the lecture began, he sat very quietly and kept to himself, only lifting his head to smile and say "Hello" to whoever was introducing themselves to him at the time. When he got up to the podium, however, he completely transformed. His speech was absolutely inspiring and focused on the reasons why he wanted to write "A Long Way Gone," and what has happened since it was published.

Here are a few of the quotes I managed to scribble down:

  • "When you dehumanize someone else, in reverse you dehumanize yourself."
  • "Good people can become extremely horrible. Bad people can show signs of goodness. It is not black and white."
  • "I wanted people to see the resilience of my people and the beauty of the culture that were there, that are still there.
  • "I wanted to put a human face to this experience and wanted people to think 'this could be my brother, this could be my son, this could be me.'"
  • "Think of your education as a journey to discover yourself and your humanity. Use it to expose yourself to the world."
  • "One's life has to not just be for yourself, but for others. If it's only for yourself, it's not worth having."
  • "Show love in how you look at people and how you treat them."
  • "The issue of violence and children is not just where there are civil wars. It's wherever children are being victimized.
After the lecture, Beah moved downstairs to Barnes & Noble to sign copies of his book. The line wrapped completely around the store, and somehow I managed to be the very last person in line. I laugh remembering it because by the time I got to his table, he looked at me with a huge smile on his face and said "We're almost done!"

I was also lucky enough to attend the private dinner held in his honor later that day. Only three tables were set up in the ballroom, with about 20 total people in attendance. At the beginning, we went around and introduced everyone and then had a wonderful dinner buffet. Beah ate dinner at one table, had coffee at the next table, and dessert at the final table in order to get to talk to everyone. He is an amazing, inspirational man and yesterday's activities are something I will never forget.

I am attaching two pictures I managed to shoot during the lecture and at the book signing. They aren't that good, but you at least can see what he looks like. =)

Until next time,
Alise

Monday, January 5, 2009

New semester, new projects.

Sindhu and I are really excited for what lies ahead this semester! (Though I would venture to guess Sindhu is even a bit more excited than me, considering she is graduating--everyone be sure to congratulate her!)

Our big project, "Beyond Stereotypes," is set to launch late February and we are very anxious to see it all come together. As of right now, the dates are set for the 25th and 26th, from 12 p.m. - 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Our main focus right now is finding students, faculty and staff willing to talk about their backgrounds and beliefs to people interested in learning more. We currently have three people signed up but are hoping to find quite a few more. If you or anyone you know is interested, please let us know by emailing us at our joint account, uldf0809@gmail.com.

The other project we are working on is putting together our next exhibit. As many of you may know, the campus read project for this year is "A Long Way Gone," by Ishmael Beah. It is a true account of Ishmael's life as a child soldier. Ishmael grew up in Sierra Leone, so in honor of that we are focusing on that country as well as the other countries that make up the region of West Africa. We are hoping to have the exhibit launched by the end of January or early February. (IUPUI is very lucky to have Beah coming here to speak on March 12, so be sure to check that out as well.)

Hope everyone had a great break and good luck during the Spring semester!
Alise